TheCable

Isa Ali Pantami, former minister of communications and digital economy, recently made a claim that he raised the ministry’s quarterly revenue generation by a staggering amount.

In a press statement announcing the plan to unveil “4,366 projects” implemented in his four years as minister, Pantami said he raised the ministry’s quarterly revenue from N51.3 million to N408.7 billion.

PRESS STATEMENT

Pantami to Unveil 4,366 Projects Implemented in the Digital Economy Sector in 4 Years

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The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami), will today, the 25th of May 2023, unveil projects as part of the 4,366 projects… pic.twitter.com/csYgJdUVBp

— Prof. Isa Ali Ibrahim (@ProfIsaPantami) May 25, 2023

To ascertain the accuracy of Pantami’s claim, TheCable scrutinised the revenue figures reported by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). It is the biggest agency in the ministry responsible for the remittances from the telecoms sector, where the bulk of the revenue comes from.

Here is a breakdown of NCC’s reports for each year.

2019: In Pantami’s first year as minister, the NCC reported remittances totalling N69,849,953,000. This amount comprised N25,849,953,000 from spectrum trading and an additional N44,000,000,000 as operating surplus.

2020: Owing to the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCC’s remittances dropped to N43,638,398,000.

2021: This year witnessed a significant development with the 5G spectrum auction. The NCC reported remittances amounting to N201,049,432,000 solely from spectrum sales. Additionally, an operating surplus of N24,270,020,000 was recorded.

2022: The NCC’s remittances from spectrum sales reached N189,060,259,000, accompanied by an operating surplus of N35,150,277,000.

It is important to note that these figures represent annual remittances and not quarterly revenue generation.

Comparing Pantami’s claim with the available data raises several discrepancies. For instance, the total non-oil revenue remittance of the federal government in 2021 amounted to N1.104 trillion. If Pantami alone was generating N408.7 billion quarterly, the cumulative revenue generated by his sector alone would have reached N1.6248 trillion. However, this starkly contrasts with the reported figure of N1.104 trillion.

Additionally, the remittance figures from the NCC fail to support Pantami’s claim of a substantial increase in quarterly revenue generation as the agency had been remitting similar impressive figures before he was appointed minister. The available data clearly indicate that the NCC’s remittances reflect annual amounts and do not align with the significant rise claimed by Pantami.

Furthermore, Isa Ali Pantami stated that independent bodies assessed his claim.

However, he did not disclose the names of these independent bodies, which raises concerns about transparency and verification.

In light of the available data, there are notable inconsistencies in Pantami’s claim regarding the quarterly revenue generation in the ministry of communications and digital economy.

The reported remittance figures from the NCC do not support the claim that Pantami achieved the significant increase stated. Also, the total revenue generated from the telecom sector does not align with the actual non-oil revenue remittance reported by the federal government.